A new committee developed earlier this year has been working to improve move-in operations to reduce costs and duplication while simplifying the process.

The Move-In Operations Committee, proposed by Associate Director of Housing Bev Wyatt, has been meeting since January. With representatives from Residential Housing, Facilities Management and Event Services, the group has reduced the amount of duplication in operations and smoothed processes for staff and new students overall. Members also brought in representatives from Moving and Surplus, Information Technology, Recycling, Housekeeping, Access Control, Ohio University Police Department and Parking Services. Human Resources also assisted the group.

"This is the student's first impression of Ohio University, and we want that impression to be good," said Christine Sheets, executive director of Residential Housing. "We felt this committee needed to come together in different areas to refine our processes. We looked for ways to do things better, more efficiently and with the end cost in mind."

Some of the duplication the committee encountered revolved around inspections of residence hall rooms. Director of Facilities Management Steve Mack, also a committee member, said rooms often were inspected several times by different departments.

"It was quadruplication," he said. "The bad thing was that I was doing my inspection, I wasn't sharing the results with the other departments, who were doing their inspections. We would enter two to three work orders to do the same thing, because nobody was sharing information."

Another process that needed streamlining was the move-out procedure. Jennifer Maskiell, assistant director of Residential Housing, said students often did not understand what was expected of them when they moved out of a residence hall. By clarifying procedures, rooms were better maintained and the work to prepare them for the next crop of students moved more quickly.

Maskiell added that the group's meetings fostered better communication and an understanding of what each unit does. That teamwork helped members feel more comfortable about making suggestions on how to improve processes.

The committee is expected to meet again after move-in weekend to continue refining the process.